Burnt Out
by KottaKitty
Summary: There isn't time to worry about blood sugars and metabolism when you are in the middle of a fight. Barry would just have to take the consequences.


_I saw Justice League and absolutely loved it! Mostly for the team themselves, I'm really looking forward to more content for the cinematic universe soon! Who doesn't love a bit of Flash-Whump? I know I love the stuff, so here is my contribution- I hope you enjoy it!_

The Justice League. The epitome of a of strength and smarts. Each member unique and yet when put together the work like a well oiled machine. Cogs all turning in unison. But that's not to say that they always work perfectly. If life is a learning curve, then forming a team of hero's to stop the forces of evil, well, that's a long harsh drop.

Over time they have worked out the kinks in their team. certain members leaning to hold back until a plan was formed instead of charging in head first. Others learning that they can depend on those around them. The feeling of what its like to actually have friends for the first time.

Learning that there are limits.

Training together during the day, getting the signal that the league is needed in the evening. Its a lot.

On a team made up of a goddess, an alien, an Atlantic warrior, a cybernetically enhanced athlete, Batman and a college kid who got struck by lightning- guess the weakest link.

Barry could feel that he was going slower, he knew he was almost visible to the human eye- more than just a red blur. He was starting to feel out of breath- since when did running make him breathless? He stopped briefly, resting a hand on his knee as we watched the rest of his team fight valiantly against their latest foe.

The league found themselves fighting some kind of large technologically advanced blob of an alien monster. The sort of generic villain thought up by a two year old with a decent imagination and access to an array of crayons. The blob was protecting itself with some kind of purple electronic field, which cyborg had just found the weak spot on.

Batman called in the latest model of bat-fighter-jet (the power of money) and was now shooting relentlessly at the the monsters shield. Superman flew through the air, heat vision focused on the weak spot. Dangling off each of his hands were Wonder Woman and Aquaman, sword and trident gripped in their respective hands, ready to slash the great monster through the middle once the opening was there.

The Flash could see it happen in slow motion. The shield broke. Arthur and Diana swung from Clarks hands, battle cries exploding from their mouths as their weapons broke the slimy skin of the foreign being. But instead of making a strong slice though their foe, they began to get swallowed up by the surface of the monster.

Barry moved with out thinking, Batman and cyborg weren't fast enough to help, Superman (as much as he liked to think he was) wasn't fast enough either.

He was there in a second, only sharp shocks of lighting tracing his steps. He vibrated his body at such a rate that the monsters surface couldn't get a grip on him, he reached in pulling his friends out from the ooze. Then jumped back himself. All three of them fell to the ground harshly, tumbling and rolling before grinding to a stop. Victor, Bruce and Clark all charged up their weapons, and together dealt a finishing blow to the monster. It let out a shriek and eventually fizzled away to nothing.

Arthur and Diana get up from where they fell and brushed themselves off.

"Thank you, Flash, we can always rely on you to be there when we most need you." Diana said as she stretched out her muscles, before she noticed her team mate struggling to sit up.

"Hey man, whats wrong?" Arthur said, hurrying over.

Barry managed to sit himself up, he held his head in his hands, eyes clamped shut- was he spinning around? Or was it just the world? Either way he felt sick to his stomach, and like molasses were being poured all over him . "Nothing, nothing I just-" he let out a deep breath "I need a second." he tried to brush it off but he honestly just sounded pained.

"If you are not well, tell us whats wrong," Diana said on her approach.

Bruce had now landed. He, Clark and Victor made their way over quickly.

Diana sat behind Barry, supporting his back and holding him up. Bruce knelt in-front of him an held a small light at Barrys face so he could get a better look at the speedster. His eyes were unfocused and his skin looked clammy. "Barry are you hurt anywhere?" Bruce spoke clearly and firmly.

"Only my pride." Barry sounded like he didn't really know what he was saying "I'm no match for you guys." his words were slurred. His eyes rolled back and his head lolled to the side, Diana cradled his head gently.

Victor stepped forward, "Let me run a scan on him."

Bruce put his hand up to stop him "I'll take him back to my manor, we have the facilities there to help him, I have a feeling I know whats wrong. Speedsters aren't built to run on empty. Today has been rigorous, we all need time to recuperate." he turned to Superman "Clark, if you could."

Clark nodded. Wonder Woman lifted the speedster up with ease, handing him over to Superman who then flew off, up and out of the building.

"I'll monitor his blood-sugars and make sure he eats enough to feed a small village." Bruce continued. He seemed calm, but he was kicking himself for not taking in to account the speedsters needs first. He was aware that Barry was at risk of overdoing it, but never really took notice.

Barry didn't do anything slowly. But waking up from the exhaustion induced sleep he'd fallen in to seemed to take forever. He was semi-conscious for quite some time, he could hear Bruce and Clark talking about what could have gone better on their last mission- listening to them be so serious was very… boring. It was sending Barry back to sleep.

Eventually Clark left, all Barry could hear after that was Bruce typing at the bat-computer. It was quite soothing, he couldn't remember that last time he felt so calm. But he was also really starting to feel the need to move again, his fingers were twitching with the want to be active.

He groaned and opened his eyes, the batcave was brighter than he remembered. The light giving him a headache instantly. "What I would do for like fifty deep pan ham and pineapple pizzas right now." He mumbled, voice sounding dry.

"I need to re-evaluate your membership to the league if you like pineapple on your pizza Flash." Bruce stated, sounding an awful lot like he wasn't joking.

"Don't knock it till you try it- We cant all have caviar on our pizzas ." Barry ginned.

Bruce exhaled almost fondly in reply before going back in to serious mode "Don't move too much, your hooked up to a specially mixed IV solution, it took a bit of work to make something to bring your blood sugar levels back to normal. Your metabolism is really something else."

"I'm a freak I know." Barry laughs and tries to sit up but he honestly still feels light headed, the laughter only adding to his headache.

"Try not to move for a bit longer. You really burnt yourself out."

"You're telling me." Barry rolls head back "I cant remember the last time I was still for so long. I don't even sleep this long at night- power naps work wonders, even better when you're a speedster."

"Yesterday-" Bruce began "-how long had you been without eating before the fight?"

"I don't know- since second breakfast? Maybe? We were really busy."

"And did you feel your blood sugar affecting you before the fight?" Bruce asked, lips tight in his usual frown.

"I guess. But we didn't have the time to stop for anything. Its not like I can tell some gooey alien monster thing to stop for a time out 'cause I gotta grab a pizza or ten." Barry sighed, he couldn't help but feel like Batman wasn't far off of kicking him off the team. Why wouldn't he? He can move at super human speeds, sure, but hes scared of so much and hes the only one who seems to have a limitations.

Bruce was silent as he took in the information.

Barry braced for bad news.

He really didn't want to leave the team. They were his first real fiends since… well, ever. He felt such a sense of belonging with them, purpose, like he was actually doing something good with his life. Fighting against evil forces. Instead of doing his best and running away before there was any real sense of danger.

"I've made some modifications to your suit so we can avoid situations like this again." Bruce said, walking over to Barrys uniform, which was spread out on a table near by.

Barry didn't want to think about who got him out of the suit, and how they did so. He felt that it should be one of the only questions that he never found out the answer too. "

Pimp my suit!" Barry joked. When Bruce didn't respond the speedster felt the need to explain himself- he spoke too much when he felt nervous "Y'know, like- Pimp My Ride? You ever watch that? Is that where you get your ideas for the batmobiles for?"

"Right." Bruce said, he clearly hadn't listened to whatever Barry had just word-vomited.

He picked up one of the deep red arm guards off the table and showed it to the flash. He clicked a small button on the inner side of the piece of costume and a panel slid back revealing eight small balls. "These are energy balls. Alfred developed the recipe back when I first became Batman, they are extremely useful for giving your body an extra kick when you need it. He changed the mix so it could work with your heightened metabolism. If you ever need more we will keep a supply here, just say the word. But don't eat these for snacks. I can tell you they don't taste good and should never replace an actual meal."

Barry blinked in surprise. He couldn't believe someone, let alone Batman, had done this for him. "Thanks." was all he could muster, he felt quite speechless.

"-And" Bruce continued going back to the table "Press and hold here for five seconds," He pressed an area on the left hand shoulder of the Flash uniform. Another compartment but this time on the right side of the outfit opened revealing a small injection. "This, is for emergency situations only. Its a mix much like whats in that IV, but with a concentrated dose of adrenalin also. Again, only use this if you feel it is necessary."

Barry listened carefully. It was impossible not to listen to Bruce when he spoke in that serious tone. "Bruce, wow." Barry sat up slightly, he felt his energy slowly returning. "I don't know what to say. For once." He chuckled "Thanks for looking out for me. Honestly I thought I was about to get the boot form the team, you guys really don't need me holding you back." the sadness in his eyes showed that he really meant what he said.

"Barry, you're stronger than you think and more important to this team than you could ever truly know." Bruce didn't waste any time getting to his reply, he felt that the youngest of their team could use a boost. Years of being a father to Robins and support from Alfred kept him from being one hundred percent made of stone.

Barry nodded, his famously chatty and chirpy voice failing him. Overwhelmed by the care he had received and also still a bit woozy from recent events.

Bruce understood, silent communication made more sense to him that actual conversation sometimes. "When you're ready, let me know. I'll call the other league members and we can discuss plans gong forward over dinner. We'll order pizza, save Alfred cooking enough to feed your 'snackhole' as you put it." Bruce smirked.

"Will do!" Barry smiled laying back, just five more minuets and he'll be zapping around again no problem. He could listen to Bruce tying on the batcomputer for a bit longer.

He may be the weaker of the justice league members on paper. But he knew he was valued and just as important as his friends.

He could get used to this.

 _Thank you very much for taking the time to read, I really appreciate it! A comment and a favorite would be absolutely amazing too!_


End file.
